Old Black Train
by THECLoD-3215
Summary: Regular old crossover. Wirt and Greg, both "frazzled" by their Halloween experience, are sent to Gravity Falls for a "relaxing and fun" summer vacation. Of course, they meet the Mystery twins, and not so relaxing events unfold. Rated T for occasional language, some topics brought up, and general paranoia. Cross posted on Wattpad
1. Prolouge

**A/N: Hello there. This is gonna be really bad, but... I really wanted to write it. So, here's my really crappy OTGW & GF crossover fanfiction. I will say, I **_**didn't**_** really ever watch all of Gravity Falls. I watched alot, but not all. If anyone would like to point out any details or refrences I could make, I'd greatly appreciate it! Anywho, Enjoy the story!**

**(Apologies for spelling errors! The writing software I use doesn't have a spellcheck!)**

Prolouge

~ • ~

Greg happily grabbed another chocolate bar from his bag while his brother leaned on the window, asleep. The little boy glanced up and saw a puff of hair spill over the seat infront of him. Along with that he heard a sigh and saw a pair of knees raise on the seat. He tapped the shoulder of the owner of the fluffy brown hair. He outstretched his hand with a handful of candies, smiling,

"Would you like some candy?"

A girl who looked about 13 turned to look at Greg. She wore a colorful sweater and an equally bright smile. "Candy?" She questioned him, he nodded and held out his hand. "Oh, absolutely!" She took the candy from his hand, unwrapping one and popping it in her mouth. She smiled, showing off her bright blue braces. "Thanks, little dude!"

"My name is Greg! And that's my brother, Wirt!" He said, chocolate circled around his mouth. She chuckled, "Nice to meet you! I'm Mabel!" She readjusted herself in her seat to talk to the chubby seven-year old. "I have brother too! He's my twin," She gestured towards the seat next to her. Greg nodded, and took another bite out of his chocolate bar.

"So," She drew out the 'o' and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, "Where are you and _your_ bro going?"

Greg looked up, trying to remember. He stuttered, "Fa...waterfalls? What did Mom say? Something Falls?" He hesitantly decided.

Mabel nodded wkith fake solemnness, "Could the place possibly be... Gravity Falls?" She said with a small smile.

Greg grinned, "Oh, yeah! That's it!"

Mabel laughed, "We're going there too!" She paused to look at him, "Are you going to see family or..."

Greg turned to his sleeping brother and shook him. "Wirt! Wirt! Why are we going to Gravity Waterfalls?"

"Gravity Falls." Mabel gently corrected, as Greg shook his brother awake.

Wirt's eyes finally drifted open and he started mumbling, "Beatrice? Huh? Wha... huh...Greg? Greg..." Wirt rubbed his eys and pinched his brow. He looked at Greg who was practically sitting on his lap. He picked Greg up and put him back down in his own seat. "Wha-what is it, Greg? Did we get there? We're still moving..."

"They're going to Gravity Waterfalls too!" He pointed at Mabel, who was grinning like a cat.

Wirt stared at his brother for a second, "You mean Gravity Falls?" Greg nodded, Wirt sighed, saying, "That's great." he looked up at Mabel and waved slightly. "Ni-nice," His voice cracked, making him blush. He coughed into his fist and retryed, "Nice to meet you. I'm Wirt, as I'm sure Greg has already told you. What's your name?"

"Mabel. Mabel Pines. Nice to meet'ya!" She gave a quick wave, "So, as I asked your little bro, why are you guys headed to Gravity Falls? Hate to break it to you, but Gravity Falls is pretty boring." Mabel said mirthfully.

"Mabel... would you shut _up_. I'm trying to sleep." Came an irritated voice from beside her. She turned around to face him, "Sorry, bro-bro! These two are going to Gravity Falls too!" She turned back to Wirt and Greg, who had now grabbed another candy bar, which Wirt was trying to wrangle out of his grasp.

"That's Dipper, my wonderfully nerdy twin brother!" Wirt smiled when he heard a grunt from the boy in question. "Anyway," she continued with a chuckle, "Are you coming to Gravity Falls for family?"

Wirt shook his head, "Uh, no." He hesitated a bit before smiling back.

"Then why?" She said,

Wirt scratched the back of his neck, glancing around nervously. "Um... our parents sent us here on the word from a neighbour that it was good for relaxation. Or something." Wirt remembered what his parents said to him when they told the two of them the summer plans.

_ "Ms. Daniels said that it's a very cozy small town in Oregon. You'll be there for two-and-a-half weeks. I want you boys to relax and not worry about what happened during Halloween. You seem... frazzled by the experience." Wirt and Greg's mother said, a nervous air in her voice. He knew she was concerned about her boys. Greg told terrifying stories of a dark creature who sought out lost souls for his lantern, talking birds, singing frogs, and an array of other creepy and nightmarish stories. Meanwhile, Wirt kept quiet, never telling his half-brother to stop talking nonsense, but instead looking at his brorther wistfully and being more protective of him than he ever had been in the past six years. _

_ Their mother heard cries from both of the boys rooms at night. Especially from Wirt. "Alright? You boys will have to look after each other. Relax. Have fun. Meet some of the locals, make some friends. I'll see you two soon enough." Their mother said before sending them off on the bus._

"Wirt? Wirt?! Hey! Anybody home?" He was startled out off his memory from a hand drifting in front of his eyes.

"Oh! Um, sorry! Spaced out for a second!" he said apologetically.

Mabel laughed, "Uh, yeah? We could tell!" she said teasingly.

Wirt sighed, "Why are you going to Gravity Falls? You've been there before, I presume."

Mabel hesitantly smiled, "Yeah... We've... We've been there before. For family. We visited our Grunkle Stan and Ford last year. It was... fun." She added glancing over at her brother.

"Oh, yeah... fun." He added with a cold hint of sarcasm. This made Wirt raise an eyebrow, but he didn't follow it up, figuring it was personal.

Wirt wrangled another six candy bars out of Greg's hands before they all finally arrived at their final destination.

Gravity Falls.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

~ • ~

Dipper followed his sister off the bus, still rubbing his eyes from sleep. The two of them were greeted by a crowd of old friends. Soos, Wendy, Grenda, Candy, and even Pacifica Northwest, crowded around them. They spoke their hellos with hugs and pats on the back. He grinned revelling in the familiarity of these people. He barely noticed the bus leave the stop and drive away.

"And you brought friends! Nice to meet you, dudes!" He heard Soos say. This caught his attention. 'Friends? We didn't bring any-'

He looked over and saw Wirt and Greg awkwardly standing outside the crowd. He made his way over to Soos as he heard Wirt stutter, "Act-actually, no, we just met them on the bus!" He limply shook Soos' hand, a confused and helpless look on his face. Greg was taking in the attention like a puppy.

"Soos! We don't really know-" Dipper was interrupted by his sister, who threw her arm around Wirt and Greg's shoulders. "Yup! These guys are our friends!"

"Bu-but, we me-met on the bus?" Wirt tried again. Dipper made eye contact with his pleading eyes. He smiled and shrugged, saying "Roll with it, she's not gonna listen." Wirt sighed and readjusted the strap of his backpack.

"U-um. I uh... I have a question?" Mabel looked at the boy, brows raised, saying, "Yeah? What is it?"

"Is there a uh... hotel nearby for Greg and me to stay at?"

The crowd went rather quiet. "Oh boy," Dipper heard Wendy mutter.

He made his way over to Wirt, laying an arm around his shoulders. Wirt drew a hand over his face, sighing, "There's nothing, isn't there?"

Dipper chuckled and took a breath. "...no."

Wirt groaned.

"Well," Mabel started, biting the inside of her cheek. "There kind of is a motel? It's just... not so great."

"Brilliant." He muttered. "Welp!" he said throwing his hands up, "Two and-a-half weeks in a bad motel! Ought to be fun." Greg looked up at his brother, "Fun?" Wirt sighed, hanging his head. He ran a hand through his hair, leaving it sticking up. "Yeah. Let's have some fun, Greg."

Greg smiled, "Yay! Fun! It'll be like The Unknown, right, Wirt?"

Dipper looked at Wirt, who had stiffened and whose breathing stopped for a second.

"Wirt? You okay?" Mabel said, Dipper nodded.

Wirt patted his hair down quickly and shot up, "Oh-oh! Yeah-yeah! Why?" He put on a large smile, awkward and too wide.

Dipper finally said, "This is Wirt. And his little brother, Greg. We met them on the bus!"

Wendy saluted to Wirt, "Nice to meet you." A chorus of hellos greeted them.

Wirt waved slightly, "It's nice to meet all of you," Greg waved his hand around wildly, "Hello!" Mabel laughed and turned to Soos, "Hey, Soos?"

"Yeah, dude?"

"Is Grunckle Stan here? Or Ford?"

Soos shook his head, "Not yet. They should be here in a couple days, though. Don't worry, dude." Soos ruffled Mabel's hair with a smile.

"Okay!" Mabel smiled at him.

Dipper tilted his head at the large man, "Where are they anyway? Russia? Indonesia?"

Soos chuckled, "Nah, dude. They went to the Bermuda Triangle, to 'relax', as Stan said."

Dipper laughed as well, but then caught Wirt's eye. Wirt looked like he had a question, with his furrowed brows and duck face.

"What is it, Wirt?"

"Oh, um," He stuttered for a second, "What- what is a 'grunkle?'"

Mabel giggled, "yeah, I guess it is pretty strange! Stan and Ford are our great uncles. They're also twins!" Greg laughed with her, "It's fun to say too! Grunkle! Grunkle! Grunkle…" He repeated the word over and over again. Wirt smiled and ruffled Greg's hair.

"So, do you dudes want to head to the mystery shack or what?" Soos gestured to the car parked nearby, "We can drive you dudes to the motel, if you want?" He said to Wirt.

"If it's not too much trouble, We'd really appreciate that. Thank you."

Soos grinned and unlocked the car. He opened the back doors and trunk,

"Pile in, my dudes!"

Dipper blew a piece of his sister's hair out of his mouth and groaned. Packing six teenagers and one little kid was really hard, but they all managed to do it. That doesn't mean it was comfortable. Mabel, Candy, Grenda, and Greg were all basically sitting on each others laps, laughing hysterically and talking loudly. Wirt was pressed up against an open window and Dipper was leaning towards him to avoid getting kicked in the gut. Wendy had her feet up on the passenger seat dashboard. Soos had turned the radio up on full, not that it even broke through the chatter of the girl's. Wirt held his backpack close to his chest, along with his knees.

"So, what-" Wirt started, "What does one do for fun around here?" He had yell, to even make any noise.

"Well, there is hiking, there's not a lot though." Dipper screamed back.

Wirt gave him an awkward thumbs up. "We could all-"

Soos suddenly turned the radio way down and pulled into a parking spot for a shady looking motel. "This is the motel, if you dudes want, we can wait."

Wirt smiled graciously at him, ears ringing. "That-that'd be great. Thanks, sir."

"No need to call him 'sir', Wirt." Wendy interjected. Wirt opened his door, taking Greg's hands and guiding him out of the car. "I'll go pay, get a room, and we'll come back?"

Soos nodded, "Alright," Wirt smiled grabbing his suitcase.

Dipper watched as Wirt took his brother's hand into the motel. He smiled at his retreating figure. Wendy turned around, "He's damn cute. You found him on the bus?"

Mabel nodded with a laugh, "Yeah, Greg offered me some candy on the bus. Greg is so cute. Wirt is such a good older brother!"

"Yeah," Dipper said absentmindedly.

Mabel and her friends began to talk again, Wendy occasionally adding something to the conversation. Dipper, however, got lost in his mind again. He wondered what he would say to Ford. He did nearly kill everyone in Gravity Falls, maybe even the world. He stayed in his thoughts until the car door opened again.

"How was the price? And the room?" Wendy asked him, "The price was pretty normal, to be honest," Wirt said opening the other door for Greg. "But the room was…. abhorrent." He scrunched his nose up and sat down next to Dipper.

Wendy laughed, "I don't know what that means, but I'm guessing it means horrible. And that's what you get for staying at Gravity Falls motel."

Soos started up the car and pulled out of the spot. Luckily, for Dipper and Wirt's ears, Soos didn't turn the radio up any higher.

Dipper sighed and settled back on the seat and looked out Wirt's window.

_'__This ought to be an interesting Summer_.' He thought, pulling his hair into his cap.

**A/N: Hey! Thanks for waiting! By the way, I'm kind of just leaving out the fact that Wirt lived in the 70s. For simplicity's sake. So yeah! Chapter One is done! I really hope that there isn't any grammar mistakes that I forgot to fix1 If there are, please tell me! Thank you for reading!**

**(( I DO NOT OWN OVER THE GARDEN WALL OR GRAVITY FALLS))**


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

~ • ~

Wirt and Greg walked around town following the twins they had just met. Dipper was relaying silly stories that they had about different places and people from the previous summer. After getting a quick tour of the Mystery Shack, Dipper and Mabel volunteered to show them around the town.

"What about this place, Maple? Did anything fun happen here?" Greg asked Mabel as they passed a theatre named, "Theatre Time Theater." Mabel stopped and looked at the building. Her usual smile had faltered, and she stammered, "Yeah… I guess, not much though."

Dipper glanced over at her and nodded, "Yeah." Wirt noticed that both of them were holding something back. He bit his lip, not wanting to seem nosy.

Before Greg could say anything else, Wirt spoke for the first time during the whole tour, "Thank you so much for the tour," Greg looked up at him with inquisitive eyes, "But it's been a _very_ long trip for us, and I think some of us," He looked pointedly at his little brother, who had been yawning for a bit, he said, "Need to get some sleep. We should probably head back to the motel for some sleep."

The twins nodded in agreement, Dipper holding out his hand, "Good idea. We'll see you tomorrow?"

Wirt hesitated but looked at Greg's pleading eyes with a laugh. He said, "Yeah," He took Dipper's hand and shook it. "I don't think either of our siblings would have it any other way." Dipper chuckled, "Most definitely. Also," He pulled Wirt slightly away from the others, "Don't be too surprised if Mabel starts to… not-so subtly flirt with you. She tends to develop crushes in mere seconds on any human-or not human..."

Wirt raised an eyebrow, confused at what he meant. Dipper sighed and waved it away, "Don't ask." And he didn't.

Wirt ran a quick hand through his hair, saying, "Alright, Candy Pants. Let's go get some sleep." he smiled and reached out his hand to Greg.

Greg smiled and gave one last hug to Mabel, before waving goodbye.

"Wirt!"

"Hm?"

Greg beamed up at him, "You haven't called me 'Candy Pants' since-"

Wirt cut him off and said, "I know, Greg." he smiled and bent down.

"Wanna piggy-back ride?"

Greg's face split into a huge smile, confirming his intent. He climbed on to his older brother's back and locked his arms around his neck. "Onward ho, brother o' mine!" Wirt chuckled and struggled to his feet.

"Boy, oh boy, have you grown, Greg." Wirt gasped, taking a few hesitant steps forward. Greg giggled in reply.

After a couple tentative steps, Wirt had picked up a steady pace and was on his way to the shady motel. The night sky rose in all of it's grandeur above the boy's head. When he reached the room, he fumbled around in his pocket for the key. As he unlocked the door, he felt a small head fall gently on his shoulder. He affectionately smiled and pushed the door open. He laid Greg down on his bed, undoing the small buttons on the overalls. He pulled a dusty cover over his brother and sat on the edge of the bed.

_Though we may grow apart,_

_I will remember you._

_Though we may fight,_

_I will protect you._

_Though you may hate me,_

_I will always love you._

_You are my dear brother,_

_And I am yours._

After a couple minutes of sappy poetry, Wirt decided that he should probably get ready for bed. He pulled his sweater off and threw it to the chair in the corner of the room. As the sweater landed on the armrest of the chair, he thought he saw a ripple of darkness flit over to the other side of the room. He narrowed his eyes and looked through the dimly lit room. A pair of bright eyes bore into him through the dark of the room. Wirt gasped and fell back on to his bed. He blinked rapidly and rubbed at his eyes.

The white orbs disappeared and he could see the broken lamp in the corner again. He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, muttering, "It was nothing. Wirt… it was- you're just tired." he continued his sleep ritual and pulled the thin sheets over him.

But sleep didn't seem to find him that night. So instead, he fixated his gaze on the cracked ceiling. When night had reached its peak, Wirt saw a dark figure reappear in front of the door.

"_Tra-la-la-la, tra-la-la-la, chop the wood to light the fire!" _

He shot up and grabbed a pencil on his bedside table, ready to jump out of the bed.

"You-you… you're supposed to be dead! The woodsman- he killed you!" He exclaimed, voice shaking. He was met with a deep chuckle, soulless eyes mocking, "_But did you?" _He hesitated, lowering his hand. The Beast laughed and disappeared like a bad dream. Wirt fell back onto the bed and covered his eyes with his hands. His cries faltered when he felt a pair of warm arms loop around his torso. "It's okay, Wirt…" Wirt's breath hitched and he rolled over and squeezed his brother's hand. "Thank you, Greg."

"Wirt! Hey! Wiiiirt! Wirt?!" A voice called through the fog of sleep. Wirt groaned and pulled a pillow over his ears. "Five more minutes…" He groggily called. A couple laughs could be heard through his muffler. "C'mon Wirt! We're going to have fun today!"

"No…"

"We have coffee."

Wirt pulled the pillow off his face. He mumbled, "I prefer tea, but okay." He threw the covers off him and stumbled to his feet. Dipper and Mabel were standing next to the bed and Greg was sitting on the edge of the bed. They all wore bright smiles. And Dipper was holding two styrofoam cups with tops. Wirt wandered into the bathroom, grabbing his clothes and changing as fast as an exhausted teenager could. He walked out of the bathroom and took the cup extended to him. "I, uh, didn't know how you took your coffee so it's just black. I ha-"

Wirt interrupted Dipper, taking a large sip of the dark liquid, "Perfect."

Dipper smiled, "That's good to know." He took out a small leather bound notebook with a gold print of a hand on the front. "Wirt likes black coffee." He pretended to write it down, laughing.

Wirt scoffed, "Alright. So, what is this _fun_ I hear about?"

"Well, me and Dipper-"

"Dipper and I," Wirt corrected without a breath.

Mabel sighed, continuing, "_Dipper and I_ were thinking that we could bring you into the forest, and we could do a day or two of camping!"

"Like the Unknown!" Greg cut in.

Dipper looked at Greg, "What's the Un-"

Wirt had put his coffee down on a rickety table, interrupting Dipper, "Nothing important. Now _why_ are you taking us camping? In the… forest? Is it safe?"

Dipper furrowed his brow. Wirt was too quick to shut Greg down. But the follow up question made him ignore the suspicious activity. "We thought it might be fun, and yes. The forest is safe. If it wasn't, we wouldn't be taking you there. Don't worry. We'll stay together and have lots of fun."

Wirt hesitated, "But we don't have camping gear-"

"We have extras."

"Do we have food?"

"Yes."

"Water?"

"Yes!" Mabel said exasperated.

"But our clothes-"

"_Don't worry_, Wirt. It'll be fine, honestly. Why are you freaking out?" Mabel asked,

"I-" He faltered and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's nothing. Just being a worry Wirt. But are you sure-"

Greg tugged at Wirt's sweater, "Can we please go? Please, Wirt?" Wirt looked down at his brother and sighed with a smile.

"Alright… we'll go. Lead the way, Pines."

The Pines twins grinned and opened the motel door.

"Oh, and Wirt," Dipper said, "Lock the door next time."

Wirt flushed and stopped, "I- okay… thanks." Dipper chuckled and took out keys from his pocket. "It's fine, man. Everything we need is back at the Shack. We'll take the golf cart to it. That alright with you guys?"

Wirt scratched the back of his neck, clearly wanting to say something. "Yeah… I guess… but what-"

Mabel cut him off, laughing and throwing an arm around his shoulders and pressing close. "Don't worry, Wirt~" He edged a little bit away, unnerved by the sudden contact. "We'll be fine! We've camped in those woods before! There's nothing to worry about!"

Dipper nodded with a grin on his face, amused by Wirt's anxiousness.

He sighed, "Sorry,"

The ride back to the shack was short and quiet.

Minus the impromptu acapella karaoke, cheers to Mabel and Greg.

When they finally reached the Mystery Shack, which Wirt thought was exceedingly fake, they saw Soos starting a tour with a couple tourist families. As they made their way to the side door he waved at them and said, "Have fun, dudes! Careful for those bears!" He winked at Dipper and then continued to show the tourists inside. Dipper laughed and handed Greg a small backpack.

Wirt glanced between Dipper and the retreating form of Soos, fiddling with the straps of the bag. Dipper noticed this and deadpanned. He sighed and said, "Dude. There are bears _everywhere_. You need to chill. The bears here will not bother us, believe me."

"I know," He sighed, "I'm just kinda worried…"

Dipper raised his eyebrows and hesitantly said, "...Because of 'The Unknown?"

Wirt froze, swallowed and quickly said, "No. The Unknown is just something Greg made up. It's nothing. There's no reason I would be scared of it. So, no." Dipper looked away, still suspicious of Wirt.

Mabel looked between both of them, "O...kay?" She pursed her lips and took Greg's hand and led him ahead of the other two. And so the four of them made their way into the forest of Gravity Falls. While Mabel had started another pop karaoke with Greg, Dipper and Wirt remained silent, a tense air from the question before. The silence was broken when Dipper cleared his throat saying, "So… What do you like to do? Like hobbies,"

Wirt bit the inside of his cheek and stayed quiet, making Dipper laugh. "What's up? Is it embarrassing?" He nodded and the other boy smiled slightly, "Can it really be more embarrassing than mine?" Wirt raised an eyebrow, as Dipper took a breath, "I am obsessed with the supernatural and paranormal. I play tuba in my school's band, and I love the hit band BABBA. Now you try."

Wirt scoffed and laughed for a second before scratching his cheek and took the allotted breath. He hesitantly started, "Well, that virtually makes me feel better. I'm even worse of a nerd, I'm afraid." At this point, unbeknownst to the boys, Mabel and Greg had started to listen in on their conversation. "I enjoy classical music. I like learning about interior design. I play the clarinet as opposed to the tuba, plus a little bassoning-"

"Both?" Dipper exclaimed, making the older boy jump. "But you need a totally different embouchure for them!"

"Yeah-yeah… my friend bullied me into trying to play it, and I did. And I kinda enjoyed it. So I take lessons occasionally."

"That's super cool, wow!" Dipper grinned, "Wait," he faltered, "Sorry, did I cut you off?" Wirt chuckled, "Uh, yeah. I was going to say that I also write poetry… a lot… " He trailed off, lowering his voice a bit.

Mabel rushed towards him and grabbed his hands. "You write poetry?!"

Wirt froze, his face heating up from Mabel's hands holding his. "Uh- yeah?"

Greg grinned, "It's super good!" He piped in, "There was one about being lost and a graveyard or something! It sounded super-duper fancy!"

Wirt flushed, "Greg?! How do you- I mean- that was so- how do you remember that?!" He covered his face with his hands, which he had taken out of Mabel's grasp. Her eyes shone and she grinned even wider, if that was even possible.

"Can you write something about me? Or for me? Or… oh! I know! Unicorns–or magic–or, or-"

"Mabel, give him a break." Dipper chuckled mirthfully at his sister. Everyone laughed at the eldest groan of embarrassment and went back to their original conversations. After an hour or two more of walking, the group settled down to have lunch. It was a wide grove with large conifers leaning towards the middle. A few bushes created a more secure circle, but several wildflowers littered the floor of the grove. Dipper and Wirt showed Greg how to light a fire, building the pit in the middle. This consisted of mainly Wirt telling Greg to "_not _use the lighter on your hair."

After eating lunch and having a group discussion on the plausibility of shows like Buzzfeed Unsolved or any other ghost hunting television series, Wirt and Dipper continued their discussion on "nerdy" topics. As the sun finally laid itself down, Wirt noticed a sudden absence in noise beside them.

Mabel and Greg were gone.

"Dipper… did you see them leave?"

Dipper looked at him strangely, "Who? What are you-" A look of realization flickered over his face, "No. No, I didn't."

Wirt held his breath. Greg was gone. _Again._ And he hadn't known. His breathing quickened by a pace. "Let's go look for them." He said, quickly and nervous. Dipper nodded his response and opened his bag to grab two torches. The two boys walked down the path they took to get there, flashing the light over the bushes.

"Greg…?" Wirt called, followed by Dipper calling his sister's name.

"Mabel! Where are you guys?"

"Greg! Please… come out."

"Hey… Wirt. It'll be okay. We'll find them. They're probably together. Mabel knows these woods like she knows her favourite sweater. He'll be okay, man."

Wirt looked at Dipper. He looked away. He wiped at his eyes and continued on looking down the path. Dipper stood for a second staring at Wirt's figure moving down the path. Something wasn't right.

"Greg!" His voice shook, "Greg…" For the next five minutes, the two boys paced around their little camp, looking for Mabel and Greg. Dipper finally suggested that Wirt sit down and stay in the grove, while he looked around some more. He complied whole-heartedly. Wirt felt wet tears slowly fall down his cheeks and onto the dirt below him. He was shaking, holding his head in his hands and rocking himself back and forth. He lost his brother again. It was _his _fault he was gone. It was _his_ fault The Beast took him. And he couldn't take it. He heard Dipper rustle around in the bushes next to a tent they had set up prior to sun-down. Dipper was calling the names of both of them, and then he stopped.

Wirt stood up, tears quickly falling to the forest floor. He picked up his torch and shone it where Dipper had been.

No Dipper.

No noise.

Just the wind shaking the leaves.

Just the moonlight shining through the dense growth.

"Dipper... ?" He said quietly.

He was met with silence.

Taking a breath, Wirt tred closer to the spot Dipper disappeared. He turned away and walked forward, shining the torch to the woods beside him. He felt his foot slip and fall from under him. He let out a small yelp and tried to get up, but the mud he had fallen in, shifted and gave from his weight. Wirt felt his body enter cold, rushing water. He screeched and tried to grab hold of the bank, but the silt slipped through his fingers and plunged him into the river.

The current quickly swept him away, filling his mouth with the frigid water. He flailed in the river, struggling to keep himself above the water. A sharp pain filled his head, blurring his vision and abating his struggle. As he looked up, he could see the stars above him, blurred into a faint light, and then disappear.

"Hey, Wirt?"

"Yeah?"

"What are we doing?"

He stopped, "I… actually don't know. I guess… we're walking?"

"Yeah, but where?" Dipper asked,

Wirt shrugged, "I don't know."

"Shouldn't we… know this?" The shorter boy said running a hand through his hair. Wirt nodded, timidly.

They stood in silence for a second.

"We gotta leave this forest," Dipper said, manner-of-factly.

"Yeah." Wirt agreed,

They quickened their pace and continued down a stretch of road. As they walked along, Wirt looked around, more acutely than Dipper.

"I feel like I recognize this place…" He said,

"What? What do you mean?" Dipper asked, looking back at Wirt.

Wirt rubbed the bridge of his nose, "I mean, I feel like I've been here before."

"Huh, that's weird-" Dipper stopped, "Look! There's a sign!" He ran ahead as Wirt trailed behind, apprehensive of his surroundings.

"Huh. 'Pottsfield, 1 mile.' Weird name for a town."

Wirt's eyes widened, "What did you say?" He ran forward to read the sign, "No…"

"What is it? You _do _know this place?"

"Yes," Wirt hesitated, his face quivered, "And we have to get out of here _now_."

Dipper looked up at Wirt in confusion, "What do you mean? What's wrong?"

Wirt looked down at Dipper and gave him a wavering smile,

"Welcome to the Unknown."


End file.
